


Bells of Time

by Targaryen_StormBorn



Category: InuYasha - A Feudal Fairy Tale
Genre: Demon Politics, M/M, Magic, NaNoWriMo, give it a chance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-01
Updated: 2018-11-02
Packaged: 2019-08-14 09:10:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,685
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16489733
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Targaryen_StormBorn/pseuds/Targaryen_StormBorn
Summary: The story of Kagome has come to a peaceful end but for Souta, his is just beginning.Souta up to his neck in debt finds himself with no memory of who he is in the midst of a demon lord and an oncoming war.





	1. The Beginning

Souta Higurashi could not remove his eyes from the burial plot in front of him, many of the other people who attended his mother's modest funeral had already left hours ago but he could not bring himself to be one of them. Souta's whole world was buried six feet underneath the ground, and he had no idea where to even begin building it back up. It was times like this Souta wished his grandfather was still alive, despite the old man's oddities he was the rock that held the family together after Kagome left.

Kagome.

Kagome, the thought of his sister caused his fist to clench and brought up a confusing mix of emotions. There was definitely anger and betrayal, but there was also longing to be with his big sister especially now. Souta wished she would be there to comfort him, to reassure him that everything would be okay. Yet, she was nowhere to be found, she was lost to history, Souta had searched every ancient legend and myth for any mention of what may have happened to her and came up empty.

Empty.

That is what he felt, empty and alone as the sky opened and poured over him and he still could not tear himself away from the gravesite located at the back of the family shrine. Souta stayed there another hour or maybe more, he stayed until his body was drenched and his fingers had become numb with the cold.

Mechanically he took the short walk back to the house, he completed his nightly routine as if nothing changed.

 

The next morning, he awoke to a bleak sky and could not muster up the motivation to get out of bed. Souta ignored the knocks on the door, no doubt more people bringing over food and expressing their condolences. He did not want to hear their apologies, a part of him didn't think he deserved it. He wished he had walked his mother to the store that day like he usually did, but he was so caught up in some stupid new game that he had gotten earlier that week he hadn't noticed she was gone. Not until hours later when the police showed up asking him to identify the body.

Souta's mom was found in an alleyway still alive but badly beaten, bleeding from a stab wound in her stomach. She died on the way to the hospital. The police claimed she was the victim of a mugging, luckily his fears had not been confirmed and she experienced no other kind of humiliation. She had fought back, the police said, and Souta could believe it, his mother possessed a spunkiness that he did not inherit, a bravery that he always admired in her and his sister. Guilt kept him bedbound for another three days.

When Souta managed to get up it was because he could no longer stand the hunger panes. He went to the freezer and pulled out one of the meals his mother had frozen, meant to be served during winter when the tourist season ended and money was tight. Money, that was another thing he had to worry about, his grandfather was a big drinker and was easily persuaded by his less than reputable friends to join in on get-rich-quick schemes. Souta's grandfather was able to hide the amount of debt he accrued until his death a few months after Kagome left, and his mother took on a second job. Souta at eleven started working odd jobs until he found a stable one when he was sixteen. He had been working ever since, helping his mom wherever he could, even missing out on his higher education.  
education  
Souta could remember the sorrow on his mother's face when she told him she could not afford to send him to a university. Souta never minded, of course, preferring to work with his hands at the local construction company, and he assured her of such. Not that she listened of course.

It looked like now at nineteen he would have to get a second job on top of his first and his duties on the Shrine. The funeral for both his grandfather and mom pushed the debt close to its original amount. 

Souta felt himself shake as the first sob escapes his body, he hunches over hugging himself as the tears drip into his meal. He felt so lost and unsure, wondering what he could have done in a past life that cursed him to this life. 

 

Souta allowed himself another day of self-pity before reluctantly getting dressed in clothes that were not pajamas and headed out to hopefully find work. Most places he visited said they’ll keep him in mind but were not hiring and others simply told him that he did not have enough qualifications. By the end of the day, the rain had started back up and Souta unfolded his umbrella, heading home feeling even less hopeful than before, a feat he did not think was possible.

About midway through his trek, he notices a small hunched figure leaning against the wall of a closed thrift store. He wanted to ignore whoever it was and continue walking, but something compels him to stop.

“Are you okay?” Souta asks before he could stop himself.

“Hm?” The figure looked up and Souta was dumbfounded by the expressive brown eyes that inhabited such a wrinkled and ancient face.

“Oh my umbrella was swept away in the wind-” the old woman's voice was also more youthful than he expected “- but I wouldn’t want to trouble you.”

Sota gave her a kind smile, “It would be no trouble at all.” He spoke softly a bit ashamed that he had almost passed her by.  
“You can share mine and I can walk you to where you need to go. These streets are not the nicest after dark and I would hate for anything to happen to you.” 

“You are too kind…” She trails off looking at him expectantly.

“ Gomen-nasai, I am Higurashi, Souta.” He interduces himself giving her a respectful bow.

Her eyes seem to brighten even further “And I am Aki.” She offered no family name and Souta thought it would be impolite to ask.

Souta looped her arm in his but allowed her to lead him. Souta struggled to find something to say to the lady, he was never particularly good with people, which did not help his chances at finding work.

“What is a handsome young man like yourself doing out so late?” Aki asks startling him out of his depressing thoughts. “Not sneaking through the window of some poor girl, now are we?” Aki spoke coly.

“Not quite-” he gave a small laugh, girls did not look twice at him “- I’m looking for work.” 

“Ah! Looking to support a family soon?” The old women prods.

“I’m only nineteen!” Souta exclaims.

“Back in my day, you would be on your second child.” She waggles her free finger at him. “Nowadays you wait much too long to have kids, cannot even play with them because your knees have already started to ache,” she complains goodhearted.

For a moment Souta allows himself to picture a future, a pretty wife who would scold Souta for coming home late but would user him in with a homecooked meal. He imagined tucking in his kids, lulling them to sleep with stories of a half-human half-dog demon defeating evil. Souta could get a cat or two and bring home a paycheck that would provide for them and then some. However, this fantasy was short lived when his rational side reared its ugly head. He would never get a wife, always tongue-tied around any attractive person, male or female. He would never be able to get a good enough job to provide for a family without a degree.

Souta’s somber thoughts kept him quiet for the rest of the walk.

Aki stops him at a modest but slightly unkept house not too far from his original destination. 

“Osoreirimasu!” Aki thanks him cheerfully and Souta blushed at the overly formal term.

“It’s absolutely no problem! No need to thank me!” He says hastily as they walked to her door.

" Oh, I would disagree not many younger folk these days would go to all the trouble of walking a little old woman to her house," Aki sighs "How I miss the days of manners!" Aki fusses with the purse at her hip and for a moment Souta feared-and secretly hoped that she was trying to compensate him. Instead, she pulls out a small tinkling object.

“Here.” Aki grabs his hand and drops a small object into his hand.

“You don’t have to give me anything.” Souta protests but was quickly cut off.

"Nonsense. This has been in my family for generations, I am the last of my family line, my children have all died before they could have children. I would rest easier knowing such a precious heirloom would be in the hands of such kind stranger." Aki reassures him.

“If you insist,” Souta says awkwardly, unsure of what to do. Aki gives him a smile before opening her door.

"Perhaps it will bring you luck on your coming journey." And with that puzzling statement, she disappears into her house closing the door.

Souta unfolds his hand and takes a look a the object, it was a bell, tarnished with some sort of intricate writing he could not make out in the fading light. He shrugs and puts the bell into the pocket of his jacket before making his way back home.

The wind picks up, tossing debri into the air, Souta picks up his pace knowing he was bound to get a cold if he kept getting caught in the rain. He wasn't paying too much attention as he takes the steps of the Shrine two at a time when he was younger Kagome use to race him up the stairs, she had always won, her legs being much longer than his chubby child ones. Souta smirked he bet he could beat her now. Years of working hard labor had toned him up nicely, while not incredibly built, he did have stamina.

Kami, Souta misses her but Kagome’s memory is tainted with a bitterness that he couldn’t quite dispell no matter how hard he tried.

When Souta looked up he expected to see his front door but instead, he had somehow managed to walk to The Bone-Eater's Well, he supposes he must have unconsciously walked due to his train of thought. Souta hadn't been by for years, when he was younger and full of hope he use to wait for hours, praying for Kagome to pop back up with a smile on her face.

Souta didn't want to be here. He made a move to walk away but found that he was stuck as if someone had put superglue on the bottom of his shoes while he was lost in thought.

“What the-” He grunts pulling at his leg.

All of a sudden, he was lurched forward by his jacket as if someone took ahold of his pocket and was pulling him. A supernatural wind blew open the doors that had been chained and spelled shut, the rain began to pour down in heavy sheets blocking his vision temporarily. He could feel himself being pulled forward his feet sliding on the rough ground.

Souta's heart pounded in his chest like thunder when he notices where he was being led to.

The well.

"No! What's going on?!" He panics, looking around wildly for something to grab ahold of, but there was nothing and within a few seconds he had vanished within the well in a flash of magenta light.

The rain outside stopped.


	2. Chapter 2

The first thing Souta was aware of when he woke up was in pain, a deep aching pain that seems to stem from his very bones. The next was that he was lying on a bed of soft dirt, he opened his eyes carefully groaning as the filtered light caused a sharp pain in both his retinas. He gave himself a few minutes to adjust to his situation before sitting up hissing at the aches in his body.

‘Where am I?’ He thought with a frown, he observes his surroundings, four stone walls slightly damp and crawling with vines. Souta looks up and noticed that the light was coming from an opening about six or seven feet above him. Was he in prison? That thought combined with the realization that he was sitting not only in dirt but bones caused his heart to pick up speed.

‘Who am I?’ is his second thought. Realizing that he could not recall what led him to this strange place. Or anything else before opening his eyes only moments before

It took him another few moments to reel in his panic before he could try to think rationally. Souta eventually decided to check his pockets for clues, he found a few pieces of gum, a bell and thankfully a wallet which contained an ID. 

“Souta Higurashi…?” He said the name aloud, the name wasn’t familiar he thought with some frustration, it was as if it belonged to a stranger. He put the items back into the pocket of his grey jacket and stood up slowly. 

“H-hello?” Souta called out hoarsely.

“Anyone there?” He tried again after clearing his dry throat. Souta waited for a response but none came.

After a few more attempts he gave up and tried to formulate a plan. He noted that the vines looked thick and a harsh tug later shows that they were strong. So he uses them to climb up the stone wall, it was a slow and painful process but he made it midway through before the vine snapped and sent him crashing back into the dirt floor.  
Sota let out a pained yelp as the fall only further aggravated the pain in his body.

“Oh? Is someone down there?” A feminine voice asked from above and Souta’s hope soars.

“Yes! I’m down here! Please help me!” Souta couldn’t make up the features of the person due to the sun which had risen partway through the sky during his attempt to escape but ahead peeked over the lid of the well.

“Are you hurt?” The voice asks laced with concern.

“I’m not bleeding.” Souta’s responds.

“Okay! Just give me a second and I’ll have you out in no time!” Souta sighs in relief

It wasn’t long before a rope was thrown down.

“Just tie it to your waist and I can pull you up.” Souta doubted the person words, going by the pitch of the voice it was female and he had reservations, as he didn’t want to fall back down again. However, at this point, he knew he had no other options and quickly did as she said.

Sooner than he thought possible he was pulled over the walls and blinded by the sun, which was much brighter than in the hole.

After blinking away the water that formed in his eyes he takes in his rescuer. She was a thin, short girl, maybe a few years younger than him. She was pretty in an understated way and had a long ponytail jutting from the side of her head What drew him in was her eyes, a warm brown color that tugged at his brain for some reason.

“Ah- Arigatou gozaimasu!” He thanked her, and she gave him a sweet smile.

“You are welcome. But it was A-Un who did all the heavy lifting.” He follows the rope still tied around his waist with his eyes, letting out a small shriek when he saw the large two-headed creature lazily munching on the swaying grass.

“Do not be afraid, he is harmless! I’m Rin. What do I call you? Why were you down there? Do you not know it is forbidden to mess with The Bone-Eater’s Well?” She-Rin said rapidly scarcely pausing to take a breath in between questions.

“I-I’m Souta?” he said unsure and “I don’t know?” He took a second to look around, he was in a clearing surrounded by trees. How did he end up in a well?

“You do not know how you came to be in The Bone-Eater’s Well.” She asks looking him up and down her eyes widening as she took him in.

“Your clothing is strange, I have only seen such clothing from Kagome-chan.” 

‘Ka-go-me?’ What an odd name. 

Rin claps her hands startling him “Well that settles it I will have to take you to see big sister! She will be able to help you. I am sure of it.” She said eagerly grabbing his hand.

“Ah- o-okay.” He blushed using his free hand to untie himself. 

Souta half listens as Rin cheerfully chatters beside him, he was lost in thought but did his best to follow the conversation. It was an odd feeling not knowing who you were, he felt disconnected from his body as if he were a parasite.

Rin’s gasp causes him to lose his train of thought, he looks up and almost screams, in front of him was two reptilian humanoid figures, they were scarcely dressed, only a loincloth covering their lower half. They had large leathery wings, the same oil slick color as their scaly skin, attached to their backs. What frightened him the most was the completely dark red eyes and slanted pupils, glinting with a blood-thirsty madness.

“Come now prettty girl, Massster has need of you.” The tallest one hisses out through sharp teeth and Souta caught a glimpse of its black forked tongue.

“I’m not going anywhere with you!” Rin shouted reaching beneath her colorful kimono pulling out two short swords like objects, it looked to be made of some sort of metal, each one had three sharp prongs and what seemed to be leather wrapped around the handle.

‘Okinawan sai.’ Souta’s mind supplied, he did not have much time to think about it before Rin pushed him behind her. Souta was surprised at the fierce look on the face of the previously innocent appearing girl.

“A-Un protect Souta!” She commands and within an instant A-Un was in front of him blocking the view of the fight. Souta could not just coward behind A-Un despite everything in him wanting to, He climbs atop the A-Un and couldn’t help but gape. Rin was fast, really fast, and graceful. It looked as if she were dancing and not engaging in a life or death battle. She ducks and weaves, deflecting the sharp claws that threatened to behead her.

He could tell that she was losing steam, and everything in him wanted to join the fight but as he locks eyes with the shorter of the demons who gave him a nasty grin full of teeth, he found himself paralyzed with fright. 

In an instant Souta was knocked off A-Un as the creature rears up, blocking the winged demon from Souta. He scrambles backward torso heaving in fright until his back hits a tree. A-Un puts up just as good of a fight as his owner, but A-Un did not have the advance of speed and was quickly knocked out as the scaly creature clanks A-Un’s heads together. 

The… ‘Yokai,’ once again his mind supplies the word, is on top of him in an instant. Souta’s face pales, his heart thundering in his chest.

“Souta!” Rin yells and in her distraction, the other yokai pins her by her throat. Souta closes his eyes, tears slipping unwillingly from his eyes as the creature breaths it's rancid breath on his face. Up close the creature was more fearsome than ever.

‘No! No! Rin!’ 

‘I..don’t…wanna die’

‘I don’t want to die, not knowing who I am!’

His thoughts are rapid and desperate forming a loop in his mind.

“You tassste so sssweet.” Souta felt it’s slimy tongue lapping at his tears.

‘I’m not going to die here, I need to find her!’ Souta didn’t know who ‘she’ was but the thought of her caused something to snap within him.

‘Your pocket!” A ringing voice echoes him his mind and without hesitating despite not knowing what it would achieve Souta follows the instruction his eyes firmly closed. His hand clasps the small bell and he thrusts it into to the face of the yokai above him.

“Fusegu!” The word rips from his throat sounding much more confident then he felt, there was a searing pain in the palm of his hand then a bright flash that blinded even while having his eyes closed.

The air is still.

Souta opens his eyes blinking away the black spots, Rin was still pinned by the yokai but both of them were staring wide-eyed at him. Souta glanced at his hand which was still outstretched, then at the slumped, smoking body. Whatever ever just happened took out over half of the yokai’s face.

Before anyone could react, a figure drops from above, Souta was able to make out long silver hair before it dashed to Rin. For a moment Souta thought that his newly found friend was doomed and he once again found himself paralyzed in his panic. Instead, the new yokai (because could it really be anything else at this point?) attacked the reptilian creature. With a long green whip? That had suddenly materialized from its hand killing him instantly.

“Sesshomaru!” Rin exclaimed drawing the tall figure in for a quick hug, the finely dressed yokai gave her a pat on the head before turning around.

Souta took in a sharp breath, this yokai had to be the most attractive man he had ever seen, not that he could really recall any face in particular. He had a regal brow and cold golden eyes, handsomely dressed in a pure white hankimon, for a brief moment, he wondered if this creature was, in fact, a kami.

“And now for you little thief.” The voice was as cold as his eyes, and between one heartbeat and the next Souta found himself pinned for the second time that day.


End file.
